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Monday, January 2, 2017

Drain Removed

The drain that was put in duringsurgery on Saturday and removedtoday, because it wasn't effective.The washing out of the infectedarea was effective, however.

Evidently, the drain they put in the side of her face during the surgery on Saturday wasn't working as advertised, so Dr. Franks took it out at her bedside today. That wasn't pleasant! The infectious disease Dr (Richardson?) said they haven't yet got a firm ID on the "bug" that has attacked her face, but there are a "lot" of different bugs growing in the petri dish. She says that's a bit unusual for a facial infection, but may indicate there was some communication between the mouth cavity and the jaw joint during the initial surgery, as the mouth DOES have many varieties of flora growing in it.

She can't tell if any of the infection has entered the bone, but thinks at this point that there are good signs that it has not: no fever, and a much improved look to the infected area after only 48 hours. In any case, whether it's only affected soft tissue or not, she'll be on strong antibiotics for an extended period. The vancomycin really zaps her strength! Her intestines started working today, so there's another sign of progress.

I extended my stay here for another week. I hope things are more settled by then.

About Me

Katie was born with Treacher Collins Syndrome, and has been trached since a newborn. The 2004 & 2011 surgeries were intended to help open her airway, align her teeth, and allow her to eat more easily. However, due to what we consider to have been woefully inadequate preanalysis and planning, those surgeries were complete failures and left KT with severe facial pain. Now, we are trying to find a solution to eliminate pain primarily, and to create a jaw joint that will allow her to chew food, which has become more and more difficult as she's entered adulthood.